tvN demonstrated its power as the "No.1 K-content channel," ranking first by a wide margin in the drama topicality institutional sector from January through September and recently recording first place in monthly viewership for September.
First, buoyed by drama success, tvN recorded the No. 1 target rating among all channels in prime time in September 2025. Looking at September's results, Bon Appetit, Your Majesty, which combined the fantasy romantic comedy genre with the subject of traditional Korean cuisine, set a new record as the No. 1 in the 20-49 target rating nationwide among broadcaster dramas in 2025 and ranked No. 1 in average household ratings among tvN dramas in 2025. The Monday-Tuesday drama Shin's Project, with Han Suk-kyu's overwhelming presence and a timely subject of a "negotiation expert" in an era that needs communication, achieved first place in its time slot each episode and showed daily increases, recording a nationwide household peak rating of 10.6% just three weeks after broadcast. In addition, the recently concluded variety show Iron Girls 2 captured both significance and ratings by recording a peak 4.7% viewership in the Seoul metropolitan area. (Based on paid platforms combining cable, IPTV and satellite / Provided by Nielsen Korea)
In particular, it proved its momentum this year in the topicality sector as well. From January through Sep. 2025, according to Good Data Corporation's FUNdex survey, tvN ranked first in market share in the weekly topicality broadcaster drama institutional sector. Program-level topicality was also clearly No. 1. Over a 39-week period, tvN was the channel with the most No. 1s, achieving first place 16 times in the TV-OTT drama topicality institutional sector and 15 times in the TV-OTT drama cast topicality institutional sector. In overall 2025 drama topicality for concluded dramas, tvN dramas placed four works in the TOP 10, recording the most entries and reinforcing tvN's brand competitiveness to viewers.
Looking at this year's tvN drama lineup, a variety of well-made works were released, from romance to historical dramas and humanism. Starting with Bon Appetit, Your Majesty, which ended with a peak rating of 20%, Shin's Project, which showcased Han Suk-kyu's acting and a cheerful story, Resident Playbook, which swept both ratings and topicality, Seocho-dong, which proved global popularity, and Our Unwritten Seoul, which showed the essence of a well-made drama, as well as My Dearest Nemesis, which recorded first place in the 20-49 nationwide ratings in its time slot for every episode, and Gyeonwoo and the Fairy, which combined K-shamanism with a fresh teenage romance to deliver novel fun — works of diverse genres and subjects successively broke records for first place, proving tvN's unrivaled competitiveness.
The overwhelming topicality is seen as proof of tvN's content power, constantly leading trends and driving everyday conversations through groundbreaking works. In particular, tvN-style dramas with diverse subjects and dependable entertainment reveal the channel's direction to provide fresh yet relatable content that delivers endless enjoyment. Park Sang-hyuk, head of media business at CJ ENM, said, "Even amid a rapidly changing media environment, tvN is the broadcaster that invests the most in content and at the same time is a trusted K-content guarantee brand that supplies top content to various domestic and international platforms. We will continue to do our best to present the best works that meet the standards of not only domestic but also global viewers."
tvN said it intends to maintain momentum as the "No.1 K-content channel" in the second half of the year with a diverse lineup and solid production capabilities. The new Saturday-Sunday drama Typhoon Family (Oct. 11 debut), starring Lee Joon-ho and Kim Min-ha, deals with a story set in 1997 during the IMF period about uncertain tomorrows that everyone can relate to; the new Monday-Tuesday drama Nice to Not Meet You, starring Lee Jung-jae and Lim Ji-yeon, a mutual coming-of-age comedy, is set to premiere on Nov. 3; and Pro Bono, a bumpy human courtroom drama starring Jung Kyung-ho and So Ju-yeon, is preparing to launch. The new variety lineup is also diverse. The Kim Chang-ok Show 4 (Oct. 7), House On Wheels: Hokkaido edition (Oct. 12), Beans were planted and laughter springs overseas exploration (Oct. 17), and Six Sense: City Tour 2 (Oct. 30) are set to premiere in October. Following those are Perfect Glow, promoting K-beauty in New York (Nov. 8), and the massive global survival show I AM BOXER with Ma Dong-seok, both preparing to meet viewers.
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